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Live Blog: Irish Kick Off Super Bowl Sunday Against DePaul

2:48 pm, Irish 90-70, Final: Despite being outscored 39-34 in the second half, Notre Dame coasts to its 23rd win of the season. Led by Natalie Novosel's 21 points, five players finish in double-figures, and Skylar Diggins notches a double-double with 11 points and 10 assists.

The Irish finish 9-for-15 from beyond the arc, and shoot 58.3% for the game. Brittany Mallory contributes 14 points, and knocks down four 3-pt field goals, while Natalie Achonwa scores 16 on 6-of-8 shooting from the field.

It's Notre Dame's 20th victory in a row, and eighth straight by at least 15 points. It's also their 20th double-digit win of the season and eighth over a ranked opponent. The Irish will travel to Syracuse for a game on Monday night, before returning to Purcell Pavilion next Sunday at 3:30 pm ET against West Virginia.

2:43 pm, Irish 89-65, 2:09 2nd half: Achonwa hits both free throws and comes down with a rebound on the other end. After a DePaul layup, Markisha Wright puts back an Achonwa miss and the fans cheer for the Big Mac basket!

2:40 pm, Irish 85-63, 3:01 2nd half: McBride hits a mid-range jumper from the corner, and Achonwa gets a block on the next possession. Brittany Hrykno makes a jumper from the paint, and fouls Achonwa on Notre Dame's possession, as we go to the final media timeout of the game.

2:36 pm, Irish 83-61, 5:06 2nd half: After the crowd goes quiet, Novosel hits a fadeaway jumper and the Irish get a steal. Novosel goes up for the layup, but gets fouled. She hits both free throws to push the lead back to 26. DePaul's Kelsey Reynolds hits a short jumper on the next Blue Demons possession. The crowd is getting a little restless, as DePaul has outscored Notre Dame 30-27 in the half. Coach McGraw calls a timeout after a layup from Harry. With so many dominating home victories, a lot of these fans aren't used to seeing Notre Dame struggle. Still, the Irish are on their way to their 23rd victory of the year.

2:29 pm, Irish 79-55, 7:56 2nd half: Achonwa continues to have a great afternoon, hitting a short jumper, but DePaul uses a 13-2 run to cut the lead to 24. Peters responds with a layup, before Jasmine Penny hits a jumper for the Blue Demons. A bit of a sloppy second half for Notre Dame so far, but the Irish are clearly in control today, with a 79-55 lead at the under-8 media timeout. The Band of the Fighting Irish blasts Taio Cruz's "Dynamite" during the break.

2:21 pm, Irish 75-45, 11:59 2nd half: Turner hits another three for Notre Dame. After consecutive turnovers by Notre Dame, DePaul's Anna Martin gets a fast break layup three-point play. A couple of sloppy possessions for the Irish, but the lead is still 30 points.

2:14 pm, Irish 72-38, 15:04 2nd half: McBride hits a short jumper from the paint, Novosel gets a steal, Peters puts back her own rebound, gets fouled and converts the three-point play, and the Irish lead climbs to 36 points. DePaul responds with a short jumper from Harry. Markisha Wright gets a steal on the next possession, but Notre Dame throws it away, and that takes us to our first media timeout of the half.

2:07 pm, Irish 65-33, 17:53 2nd half: Wow. Mallory drains threes on back-to-back possessions and the Irish lead is 32. The fifth-year guard has 14 points and is a perfect 4-for-4 from long range. DePaul calls a timeout.

2:04 pm, Irish 58-31, 18:42 2nd half: Diggins drives to the hoop and makes a nice layup for the first bucket of the half.

1:51 pm: Great first half offensively for Notre Dame. The Irish shot 71.9% from the field, including 6-for-7 from 3-point range. The Natalies are the stars of the game so far. Senior Natalie Novosel has 17 points on 7-for-8 shooting and sophomore Natalie Achonwa is 5-for-5 with 12 points. The Irish have made 23 field goals, and have gotten assists on 18 of those scores (Diggins leads with 8).

1:45 pm, Irish 56-31, Half: The Irish are starting to run away with this one and could be on their way to another 100-point game. A 6-0 run with layups from Diggins, Peters and Fraderica Miller pushes the lead to 27 points. DePaul responds with a layup from Katherine Harry and gets a three-point play from Jasmine Penny. Novosel's outstanding first half continues with a three from the corner before Achonwa hits a pair of free throws. DePaul gets a layup at the first half buzzer, but with a 25-point halftime lead, the Irish are in the driver's seat this afternoon.

1:36 pm, Irish 43-22, 3:25 1st half: Back-to-back buckets from Achonwa, and the sophomore forward becomes the second Irish player in double figures. Mallory hits another three, and the Irish are 5-for-5 from long range this afternoon. Peters gets an easy bucket in the paint before McBride comes up with a nice rebound on the other end. The Irish move quickly, and Novosel dishes it back to McBride who hits a jumper from the wing. Notre Dame opens up a 21-point lead.

1:29 pm, Irish 32-18, 7:20 1st half: DePaul's Katherine Harry is doing everything she can down low to keep the Blue Demons in the game, but the Irish can't be stopped right now. Kaila Turner hits another three for Notre Dame. At the under-8 media timeout, the Irish are 4-for-4 from beyond the arc.

1:21 pm, Irish 25-12, 11:08 1st half: Another steal for Notre Dame, some great ball movement and another three for Novosel. Mallory hustles for a loose ball and steal, and finds Diggins who dishes it to Novosel for another layup. Spectacular move from the senior guard, who leads all scorers with 12 points.

1:19 pm, Irish 20-12, 12:19 1st half: Novosel hits a jumper from the the wing, and on the next possession gets an easy layup, thanks to a killer screen from Peters. Mallory gets a steal and finds Diggins in transition for another easy bucket, and the Irish have opened up a eight point lead.

1:14 pm, Irish 14-12, 13:54 1st half: Mallory hits a three, Diggins knocks down a pair of free throws and Natalie Achonwa gets a putback layup, as Notre Dame uses a 7-0 run to grab an early lead. DePaul responds with a 7-0 run of its own. The Irish get a great dish from one Natalie to another...Novosel to Achonwa for the layup, and Notre Dame takes the lead back at the first media timeout.

1:08 pm, Irish 5-4, 17:05 1st half: Slow start for Notre Dame, but Novosel gets the Irish on the board with a three from the top of the key. They get a steal on the next possession, and Mallory's fast break layup gives the Irish their first lead as DePaul calls a quick timeout.

1:04 pm: They don't call them the Blue Demons for nothing. DePaul's sporting all blue uniforms with black numbers. Irish are in their traditional home white uniforms. Notre Dame controls the tip and gets a couple of looks at the hoop, but can't convert from down low. DePaul responds with a quick bucket from Katherine Harry.

12:59 pm: The Band of the Fighting Irish performs the Star Spangled Banner, the Notre Dame Navy ROTC unit presents the colors and we're almost set for game time.

12:55 pm: Coach Muffet McGraw and her assistants take the court to a warm welcome from the crowd. Now playing on the video board, the team's "Nowhere Else But Notre Dame" video. Awesome.

12:44 pm: Oh, what a night, late December back in '63.... Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons is the selection for the Band of the Fighting Irish.

12:37 pm: Super Bowl Sunday...It might as well be a national holiday. But before our attention turns to the Giants and Patriots clashing in Indianapolis tonight, the second-ranked Notre Dame women's basketball team takes on the #23 DePaul Blue Demons at Purcell Pavilion.

The Irish are 22-1 and have won 19 consecutive games. Today will be the 36th meeting between the two Midwestern Catholic universities, a series Notre Dame leads 19-16.

With about 20 minutes until tipoff, both teams are out on the court for pre game warmups.

Today's game will be broadcast on ESPNU and we'll have the action from Purcell covered right here on Irish UNDerground.